Paper-folding machine.



No. 628,066. Patented July 4, I899. H. F. BECHMAN.

. PAP ER FOLDING MACHINE.

(Application filed June 25, 1898.)

(No Model.)

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No. 628,066. 7 Patented July 4, I899. H..F. BECHMAN.

PAPER FOLDING MACHINE.

(Application filed June 25, 1898.) (No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2,

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a .26 g j 2 IV/TNESSES IIVVENTOR Allorneyg UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE:

HENRY F. BEOHMAN, OEBATTLE CREEK, MICHIGAN, ASSIGNOR TO THE DUPLEXPRINTING PRESS COMPANY, or SAME PLACE.

PAPER-FOLDING MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 628,066, dated July 4, 1899.

' Application filed June 25,1898- To all whom it may coitoerm' Be it known that I, HENRY F. BECHMAN, of Battle Creek, in the county of Calhoun and State of Michigan, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Paper-Folding Machines; and I hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanyin g drawings,which form part of this specification.

This invention is an improvement in paperfolding machines; and its object is to facilitate the necessary adjustments in such a machine toenable it to fold the sheetsa greater or less number of times, as desired, and to enable the operator to readily make this change while the machine is running at speed.

The invention is especially designed for use with newspaper-printing presses; and in this connection its object is to enable the operator of the machine to instantly change the operation of the folder, so as to deliver the sheets folded either a greater or a lessnumber of times without stopping either the press or the folder.

The invention is particularly adapted for high-speed machines, but not limited to them.

The invention is best summarized in the appended claims, and the drawings illustrate a simple and effective mechanism embodying the same.

Referring to said drawings, Figure 1 is a detail sectional View, and Fig. 2is a detail sectional side elevation, of part of the folding mechanism embodying my invention, the parts being shown in full lines in position to make a certain successive fold in the paper. Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2, showing the parts in position to deliver the sheets with one less fold. Fig. 4 is adetail.

Referring to parts illustrated in said draw-- ings by numerals marked thereon, 1 and 2 designate parts of the side frames of the machine. I

44 and 45 are folding-rolls which lie at right angles to and arelocated slightly above a pair of rolls 26 and 27, which are adapted to form the next fold. d

The sheets are conducted by endless tapes 29 and. 30 from the rolls 44 and 45 to the rolls 26 and 27, the lower tapes running from roll Serial No. 684,500. (No model.)

The mechanism for driving the various rolls and rollers is not shown, such being common and well understood in theart.

'Above the rolls 26 and 27 and adapted to cooperate therewith is a tucker-blade 8, which is attached to an arm 7,'fixed on the rockshaft 5, located to one side of the rolls. This rock-shaft 5 is provided with an arm 21, to which is connected one end of a stout spring 12, the other end of which is attached to the frame, so as to normally rock the shaft and uphold the blade 8, a stop 23 limiting the downward movement of arm 21. On shaft 5 or beside arm 7 is pivoted an oscillating lever 6, which is provided with a curved head 55, having a notch 56 near one end, which notch is adapted to be engaged by a spring-bolt 9, contained in a keeper 10 on arm 7, said bolt being normally pressed downward against the surface of head 55, so as to engage notch 56 by spring 11, as shown in Fig. 4. The lower end of lever 6 is connected by a rod 19 to a yoke 18, which is guided bya block 14, loosely mounted on the power-shaft 15, upon which shaft is a tightly-mounted race-cam 4, the race of which is engaged by a roller 16 on a wrist-pin 17, fixed to a yoke 18, as shown .in Fig. 1, so that as cam 14 is rotated lever 6 is oscillated positively in each direction, and thereupon so long as bolt 9 is engaged with notch 56 the lever 6 and arm 7 are locked together and vibrated as one; but when bolt 9 is pulled out of engagement with notch 56 comes and remains inoperative until it is again depressed, so'as to allow bolt 11 to engage notch 56.

Above the tapes 29 and 30 and rolls 26 and 27 is a rock-shaft 47, upon which are angular stop-fingers 40, which when in their lowermost position depend below the adjoining parallel parts of tapes 29 and 30 in position to stop the sheet brought forward thereby directly over the rolls 26 and 27, so that the tucker-blade 8 can force the sheets from said tapes into said rolls, and after passing through the latter the sheets drop into a box 3, which may be provided with a stacker or packer, as usual. Upon said rock-shaft 47 is an arm 46, which projects above and over the edge of tucker-blade Sin such position as to be struck and lifted by the latter when the blade rises to its highest position 8', as indicated in Figs. 1 and 3, but will not be affected by the blade when the latter is in its operative position, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2 by full lines and by dotted lines 7' and '8. Consequently when the tucker-blade rises out of operative position it engages arm 46, which rocks shaft 47 and lifts the stop-fingers 49 out of the way of the sheets, so that the latter pass on over the rolls 26 and 27 to the table 31, having one less fold than before. I

The operation of the rolls 44 and 45 is as usual. The sheets, previously folded, it may be, by the ordinary mechanism, so well understood as to need no further description nor illustration, are brought over the rolls 44 and 45 in the usual manner and tucked therebetween, so as to be folded thereby, then carried by tapes 29 and 30 to and over the succeeding fold-rolls and delivered onto the table 31, as in Fig. 3, as the tucker-blade Sand stop-fingers 49 are raised out of operative position. As the lever 6 oscillates continuously, should the operator desire to change to an additional fold he simply pulls the arm 7 or blade 8 down until pin 9 enters notch 56 in head 55, whereupon the tucker-blade is 0perated, as the arm 7 is rigidly locked to the lever 6. At the same time the stop-fingers 49 are lowered, so as to arrest the sheets brought forward by tapes 29 and 30 over the rolls 26 and 27, and remain in this position so long as blade 8 is in operative position. The sheets are thus tucked by blade 8 between rolls 26 and 27 and given an additional fold thereby and stacked in box hen the operator desires to reduce the number of folds, he simply pulls out bolt 9, so as to disengage it from notch 56, whereupon spring 12 rocks shaft 5 until arm 21 strikes stop 23, thus raising arm '7 and blade 8 to the highest position, (shown in dotted lines 7" and. 8, Fig. 1,) in which position they are inoperative, and of course as the blade rises to this position it engages arm 46, lifting the latter, thereby rocking shaft 47 and lifting stop-fingers 49 out of operative position also.

Having thus described my invention, what I therefore claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a folding-machine, the combination of a tucker-blade, and means for throwing the same out of operative position; with sheetstops adapted to be thrown out of operative position by the movement of the blade, when the latter is thrown out of operative position, substantially as described.

2. In a folding-machine, the combination of a tucker-blade, and means for throwing the same out of operative position; with the sheet-stops automatically controlled by the position of the tucker-blade and adapted to be thrown out of operation by, and simultaneously with, the blade when the latter is thrown out of operative position, substantially as described.

3. In a folding-machine, the combination of a tucker-blade, and its operative mechanism; with sheet-stops adapted to be lifted automatically out of the way by the blade when the latter is thrown beyond its working limit, substantially as described.

4. In a folding-machine, the combination of folding-rolls, a tucker-blade cooperating therewith, means for throwing the blade out of operative position, and sheet carrying tapes; with the sheet-stops automatically controlled by the position of the tucker-blade and adapted to be thrown into or out of operative position by, and simultaneously with, the blade, when the latter is thrown into or out of, operative position, substantially as described.

5. In a paper-folding machine, the combination of two sets or pairs of folder-rolls, and tapes for carrying the sheets from the one set to the other set, a positively-vibratin g tuckerblade cooperating with the second set of rolls, and means for throwing said tucker-blade into inoperative position; with the stop-fingers for arresting the sheets over the second set of rolls, and means whereby said stop-fingers are thrown into inoperative position from and by the tucker-blade, when the latter is thrown into inoperative position, substantially as and for the purpose described.

6. In a paper-folding machine, the combination of the folding-rolls, a tucker-blade cooperating with said rolls, mounted by an arm upon a rock-shaft, means for rocking said shaft so as to throw said tucker-blade into inoperative position, an oscillating lever beside said arm, means for continuously oscillating said lever, and detachable connections for locking said arm to said lever; with the stopfingers for arresting the sheets over said rolls, and means whereby said stop fingers are thrown into inoperative position from and by the tucker-blade, when the latter is thrown into inoperative position, substantially as described.

7. In a paper-folding machine, the combination of third-fold rolls, the fourth-fold rolls, and tapes for carrying the sheets from the third-fold rolls over the fourth-fold rolls; a tucker-blade cooperating with the fourth-fold rolls, mounted by an arm upon a rock-shaft, a spring for rocking said shaft so as to throw inoperative position, substantially as de- I0 scribed.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

HENRY F. BECI-IMAN. In presence of- H. W. KELLOGG, F. W. DUNNING. 

